Homeless to Homes Society - A Free Business Idea

If you are looking for a free business idea and have time and capital laying around, this is something you might be interested in.

I was watching George Carlin's "Jammin in New York" the other night and he did a bit about the homeless. He was explaining how society is always trying to combat something (obesity, drugs, etc.) when they aren't trying to combat other countries (Vietnam, Iraq, etc.), when he came upon homelessness.  He said that no matter how much we say "We should really get the homeless off the streets and provide them with a place to live" no one wants low-income housing (designed for the homeless) in their area.

Which led me to the idea of creating a NEW society made up entirely of homeless people. I'm talking about putting them in a rural but controlled area in which you could build homes, a grocery store, a diner - a town designed specifically for the homeless. If you think about it, they don't have much now - so even giving them hole-in-the-wall structures is a step up for them.

On top of giving them a place to live, you are providing them with jobs AT these hole-in-the-wall organizations. It would be as straightforward as opening a new business, except you would be opening several in order to create the all of the necessities for the town. Simply have all the homeless interested in living in a home and getting a job and money apply for spot in the Homeless to Homes society, and interview them like any other position at any other company in any other city.

One of my biggest concerns with this idea, however, is security. The police force in our major metropolitan areas are bad enough - I can't imagine the corruption that could exist in a Homeless to Homes society. However, to combat that you could argue that the homeless have been given three things they haven't had in "X" years: a home, a job, and money. They may work hard to keep from causing trouble and landing back on the streets.

But hey, worse case they get together and rebel against the rest of the United States and the next thing you know we have Civil War II. But that's a blog for another day...

I Don't Want to Hurt Your Feelings

I was having dinner with my family one night when my sister told me something that blew me away.  She began explaining how all of the holiday parties in the Mehlville School District had changed names in order to keep from offending anyone.
The Halloween party became the Fall Festival, the Christmas celebration became the Winter party, and Valentine's Day is now Friendship Day.
To make it even worse, every class in every grade now takes part in the exact same activities: everything from playing the same games, coloring the same pictures, and working on the same puzzles.

I recall my elementary school changing the name of the school-wide Halloween party from the "Goblin Gala" to the "Fall Festival" so that it didn't scare us students. But for the seven years I attended Rogers Elementary, I never thought ONCE that this big Halloween party was going to be a chance for parents and older kids to scare the shit out of me - I looked forward to it for the easy candy-winning games and the cake walk!

Regardless, I can't help but wonder what's going to happen when these kids grow up and truly believe that Friendship Day is February 14? They're either going to be ridiculed as a little kid for only getting 6 valentines instead of 7, or they're going to be ridiculed in high school and college and after because they gave their buddy a hug instead of giving their girlfriend a box of chocolates and roses.

Why can't we live in a non-denial society, where life isn't fair and things don't always go your way? You never learn anything without getting upset or offended once in awhile.

Just ask the kid I used to beat up back in the day.

If School is for Fools, Consider Me Miles Davis

11:45 am

I was talking to my roommate last week about what's next for him after school when he mentioned something that I haven't thought about in a long time.

He said, "I've been in school for almost 21 years. How am I supposed to stop doing the one thing that has been a constant in my life since I can literally remember?"

The truth of the matter is he's right. Most of us enter some sort of school, whether its pre-school or a daycare or a combination of both, between the ages of three and five. From that point on we spend nearly the next two decades developing both an academic and social education - often times one more than the other - in school.

Sure, school teaches us how to survive in the "real world," but does it psychologically prepare us for the "real world?"

Most of my friends and I are graduating within the next two years, and speaking for myself I have no interest in entering the "real world" (which is why I'm going to open my own business). But even if I did, I'd be just as scared about whether or not I am making the correct decision(s) because the only thing I am comfortable with is school (because it's the only major lifestyle I've ever had).

I wonder if undergraduate students choose to pursue a master's degree and then a doctorate degree simply because they don't remember living life without school. Moreover, I've seen a notable amount of non-traditional students in several of my classes, leading me to wonder if the economy is the reason for their return to school, or if they, too, are most comfortable with the school system since it's something they have spent the most time in their lives within.

Whatever the case is, I can't wait to be done with school and begin my life in the so called "real world."

12:10 pm

Facebook Creeping in Public

2:36 pm

As I sit here at a computer in the library, I can't help but wonder what the etiquette on "Facebook creeping in public" is. Obviously people don't want to be "creeped on" at all, but let's be realistic - it happens.

But what could be worse than walking through the library when you look over and see someone clicking through your profile, or even worse - the slutty pictures of you on Halloween?

It's interesting how the rules of etiquette regarding Facebook and other social networking sites are yet to be fully established. Everyone is constantly checking their Facebook, and for a variety of reasons. But as I sit here and procrastinate on the readings I have for class, I can't help but check out Lindsey Marie and her friends at last weekend's Halloween party and think "Man...I should've hit that in high school before she put on all that weight."

2:51 pm

Surprise! A Terrorist Attack!

Last night I had a dream that I died. I've heard of people dying in their dreams, but I always thought the only way to die in your dreams is if you actually die in your sleep. I am thankful this is not true, considering that death is one of my biggest phobias.

Without getting into too much detail, I died in an attempted terrorist attack. Sort of a knockoff to 9/11, there were two low flying planes headed toward downtown St. Louis (realistically I don't think you need an airplane, let alone two, to knock down the Arch). However the planes were shot down by a couple of jets. The downside was that parts of the airplanes fell on me and a group of people I happened to be with and everything went dark.

When I woke up, about a second or two after everything went dark, I started thinking about how realistic the possibility of death is at any given moment. You can't predict a heart attack, a car accident, or nuclear war just as you could not have predicted 9/11.

I began to wish that our society would learn to appreciate life and the people in it more.

Halloween

4:38 pm

On the night of Halloween I went to my mom's house and handed out candy, an activity I have never taken part in. There's nothing like sitting on the front porch, drinking beers with my stepdad and listening to little kids ask me "What's black, white, and red all over?"

The best part is that I did all of that in a Gumby suit.

All night I couldn't help but consider how bizarre of a holiday Halloween is. What started as mostly a religious celebration of All Saints Day, is now more of a social holiday. It's a day for guys my age to come up with the most creative costume to try and get laid by the chick my age wearing the sluttiest. But I can get over having to stare at hot chicks wearing next to nothing for one day a year.

What really bothers me is the fact that for this one day every year it is socially acceptable to wear a costume out in public to just about anywhere. If I were to dress as Gumby in the middle of March, not only would I be gawked at, I could be flagged as a potential pedophile. Yet we dress up in costumes like this guy, this guy, and these two, and its okay because that's todays spirit of Halloween.

Continuing along the oddities of Halloween, did you know rather than simply saying "Trick or Treat," St. Louisians demand a joke before dishing out a handful of candy? The joke of this year has to be "How many men does it take to do laundry?"

A: None. It's a woman's job.

Not bad for a 10-year-old.

That was one of only three new jokes I heard. The rest I knew all the punchlines to, which leads me to ask at what point is it acceptable to ruin the little kids' jokes? When my kids are out trick-or-treating I'm going to be the guy on the block that doesn't give candy unless I hear a new joke - one that I don't know the punchline to.

And then I'll probably wake up and see toilet paper in my trees.

5:15 pm

A New Beginning

4:33 pm

I recently discovered my girlfriend has been blogging and it sparked my interest to create a new blog and begin writing again. This is simply an introductory post, nothing more (mostly because I don't have enough time right now to submit a meaningful post).

However I do plan on posting often and sharing with you certain thoughts I have collected in the past couple of years. None of them I am looking for comments on, but by all means they are always welcome.

Check back soon for updates. In the meantime, feel free to read my last blog here.

4:43 pm